Helping in the Garden

Today was a beautiful spring day with the temperature hovering around 70F/21C so it was a perfect day to work in the garden. The morning started off with Rich the mailman leaving me a treat on our mailbox!

Mom had bought some new plants & seeds & started cleaning up the yard. I got to help, mostly by playing & running around. She made me go back inside when she was using the hedge trimmer to cut back the ivy (which she hates) but then let me back out when that was done.

She planted some butter lettuce, sweet basil, cilantro & rosemary in the herb garden along with the chives, parsley & lavender that was already growing there.

With the ivy trimmed back I can run up the steps to the upper level easily again:

She won't let me play with my frisbee when she's working in the yard because I like to run up to her, scoop up some dirt & then flip it all over her with the frisbee & then run off. I think it's great fun while she's shaking the dirt out of her hair. But today she would only let me play with non-frisbee toys like my squealing yellow monkey. Here I am taking a moment to lick the dirt off my nose before I resume monkey-whapping:

She also bought quite a few annuals but will put those in tomorrow as she's still deciding where they will go. My cats Shadow & Slinky were watching us through the screen door until it was dinner time. Now they are sleeping together on the sofa. Slinky is doing really well with taking his meds & you wouldn't even know he was sick. His tumor appears to be smaller but that could just be hopeful thinking on mom's part. Shadow feels like he has been neglected so mom takes special care to brush him with his little brush & that makes him very happy & purry.

After all that running I'm now dozing lightly on the sofa next to my cats, perhaps dreaming lovely dreams of my special boyfriend, Wiggle the Dog, whom I love the best.

Playing Fetch & Slinky Update

First my cat Slinky's update - his stitches came out on Monday & Wednesday mom noticed a large lump on his cheek which worried her, so back to the vet he went on Friday. Unfortunately he has another mast cell tumor that is growing aggressively & can't be removed because of its location. Also because of the aggressiveness they are also probably some internal tumors, too - they usually attack the spleen. We are broken-hearted because we love Slinky so very much & he is the most sweetest, loving cat mom has ever had. Mom has decided to just make Slinky as comfortable as possible until it's time. We will have the vet come to the house to put him down so he will be with those he loves up till the end. For now he is eating well & mom did manage to get some benedryl & peptid AC down him (not easy) which should help make him feel better. The tumor sends off granules which are very itchy; hence the antihistimine. They also irritate the mucous membranes so that is why he's getting the peptid AC. Mom just wants him to feel as comfortable as possible so is hoping she can keep getting the pills in him. I have been very sweet to him & very gentle; we cuddle together at night on the sofa & I nuzzle his incision & tumor very softly.

Here is Slinky this morning climbing into mom's lap for a cuddle (he's very fond of her fuzzy pink bathrobe)

Then later mom took me to the park for some serious ball fetching:
Here I am gazing off into the distance; perhaps wishing my boyfriend
Wiggle the Dog was playing fetch with me:

Here I'm putting the ball into mom's hand so she'll throw it some more!

Time for a drink of water!

Running far off in the distance

Discovery Park on a Sunny Day

Today was an absolutely beautiful day so we went to Discovery Park to walk & play with my ball. The Olympic mountains have plenty of snow on them & looked pristine over the Puget Sound:

Here I am running in the tall grass!

Quit taking pics of my bum!

Playing fetch with my ball on a rope

I'm starting to get tired...

Cooling off my tummy on the grass

After two hours of walking & playing I'm now resting in front of the fireplace (fire's not on so the tiles are nice & cool on my hot tummy)

My cat Slinky is doing much better & is healing nicely. Luckily the tumor appears to be benign & although there is a small chance it could come back, it won't grow back in the same place. My cat Shadow has been a little scared of Slinky; either because he smells different or because of the cone on his head. Once the stitches are out & the cone is off things should be back to normal in our house :)

Presidents Day & Slinky

This is my cat, Slinky. He is 11 years old & is very sweet & loving, but nervous around loud noises & strangers, so he likes to hide in small, safe places. Last Tuesday mom noticed a very large, hairless lump under his right ear with a scab in the center. It wasn't there last week so she thought perhaps it was an abcess but called the vet immediately & drove Slinky, protesting loudly, to the vets that night. They did a needle aspiration & gave him an antibiotic shot & sent him home. The next day the vet called & told mom that it was a tumor & that the cells looked aggressive & they needed to remove it asap. So poor Slinky went in on Friday to have it removed, along with a teeth cleaning since he was already under & has poor teeth. We are still waiting to hear back from the lab if the tumor is cancer or not. Slinky went home that night & is doing okay, although he is doped up quite a bit on pain meds (opiates) & was befuddled for a couple days due to the general aenesthesia. The tumor was almost 3/4 inch in length, so they removed quite a bit. He has stitches from under his chin, up the side of his neck & wrapped around his right ear. It looks like his right ear has been reattached & as you can imagine, is very painful. But the good news so far is that his blood work looked "fabulous" & he is gobbling his food down like a little pig.

This is Slinky a few months ago:

This is him the day after surgery, hiding in one of his hidey-spots & looking very sad:

I have been very gentle & sweet around Slinky & since it's been raining the past few days haven't gotten my usual exercise, so being a holiday today mom took me to the park for some good, fast, ball-chasing with my new ball on a rope!

Running with my ball!

Flappy ears!

Here I am laughing

I am one happy girl!

Then we walked over to Magnolia Blvd to walk alongside the bluff. Here is looking down at the bluff to the Puget Sound

Then we rested for a bit at Sam's Bench (see little plaque)

Then we turned up the street towards home. The weather was fair today & so glad the sun came out for our walk. I had a good hour & a half of exercise so now I'm snoozing behind mom's chair, waiting for my dinner (best time of the day!)

Something Exciting in the Mail!!!

Today's mail had something for me in it!!! It came all the way from England by Air Mail from my special boyfriend, Wiggle! The envelope was even sealed with a kiss:

It was a lovely Valentine's Day card! It has pretty hearts on it:

And an oh-so-special message inside from my sweetheart Wiggle:

Here I am getting my first look at it after mom opened it for me:

I smelled Wiggle's snuffle in it & I go all googley-eyed with the excitment!

I am the luckiest Lab in the world to have such a special boyfriend like my Wiggle *sigh*

Discovery Park

Today we went to Discovery Park, a lovely 534 acre park in Seattle about a 20 walk from my house. It used to be a military base (Fort Lawton) and was the jumping off point for all the soldiers leaving overseas in both WWI and WWII. Some of the buildings dating back to 1896 have been designated historical landmarks & are still on the site.

Ears a -flying!

C'mon mom, hurry up!

Lovely view of the Puget Sound

I found bunny poo! Score!!

Tasty bunny poo :)

Some of the old army buildings - the low shelter on the right was a bus stop for the soldiers & mom's father used to catch to bus to see mom's mother when they were dating. He was a medic here during the war years.

Some historical information about the site

Puget Sound & the Olympic Mountain range in the distance

Puget Sound

Is that a bunny I see over there?

Running down a path

I Look Pretty!

I went to the groomer today for a bath, brush & nail trim. I go because once (okay, twice) mom nicked the quick when she was trimming my nails & I bled all over & ever since I won't let her trim my nails. Everyone else can, just not her. The bandana they gave me at the groomer's has a valentine's day theme, with little hearts & "be mine" printed on it. Here I am wearing it (I smell nice, too):

Then my bff, Duke the Pomeranian came by for a visit while our moms drank tea & ate biscotti. This is Duke - isn't he cute?

As usual, Shadow the cat moved to higher ground to glare at Duke as Duke likes to bark at him. Slinky ran & hid under the bed, but Shadow is stubborn & refuse to let Duke push him around.

So Duke likes to drag out all my toys (most are bigger than he is!) I kept grabbing my squealing yellow monkey & did some serious whapping to impress Duke. But then Duke became fascinated with a couple of the cats' toys & was flinging them in the air & catching them. Since the toys he had were some the cats never play with mom let him take one home. These are some of my toys that Duke dragged out:

After Duke & his mom left to go on their walk I had my dinner & now I'm relaxing on MY sofa: